Seed-planter



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

PQF. CHERRY.

SEED PLANTER.

No. 309,928. a; Patented Dec. 30, 1884.

H IE! E L-l Tl 'ITATSSES (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

F. F. CHERRY.

SEED PLANTER. No. 309,928. Patented Dec. 30. 1884.

WI T NESSES ,NVEJVTOR UNITED TATEES ATENT trier.

FELIX F. CHERRY, OF STONEVALL, NORTH CAROLINA.

SEED=PLANTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 309,928, dated December30, 1884.

Application filed February 21, 1884. I (No model.)

To a, whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FELIX F. CHERRY, a citizen of the United States,residing at Stonewall, in the county of Pamlico and State of NorthCarolina, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inSeed-Planters, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

The primary object of this invention is to provide an efficient machinefor planting rice; but experience has demonstrated the entirepracticability and eminent efficiency of the ma chine in plantingcottonseed, grains of all kinds, and peanuts, bot-h by dropping anddrilling, in cases where either method may be resorted to in depositingthe seed.

The invention consists in the details of construction and thecombinations of mechanism hereinafter particularly set forth andclaimed.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, in the severalfigures of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is abottom plan view ofa machine embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is avertical longitudinal section in the plane of line as m, Fig. 1. Fig. 3is a perspective view, on a larger scale, of part of the dropper-feederdetached, and Fig. at is a cross-section thereof in the plane of line 3Fig. 5 is a perspective view,on a similar scale, of the drilling-feederdetached, and Fig. 6 a section thereof in the plane of line 2 z.

Ais a frame-work, here shown rectangular and of skeleton form, but whichmay be varied at pleasure without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

B is a shaft or axle carrying the supporting and drive wheel 0, fastthereon and rotating it. This shaft is secured to the frame-work inadjustable or movable boxes (1 a.

To, say, a squared portion, b, of the shaft B is secured a toothedwheel, 0, adjustable and held in any adjustment thereon by a set-screw,(l, in its hub. A series of toothed wheels, 6,

are fast to a shaft, f, placed in the frame parallel with the shaft 13,and the wheel 0 is made to engage one or another of these wheels 6 byappropriate adjustment on the shaft B,and the proper movement of theshaft to or from themby means of its adjusting-boxes a a. The wheels 0and e constitute change-gearing for varying the rapidity of sowing; butthere are other obvious and well-known means for effecting this whichneed not be here detailed, and which are within the scope of myinvention. The gearing may be boxed in to protect it from dirt, 860.

On one end of the shaft f, outside the frame,

5 is a sprocket-wheel, g, and at the other is a crank-arm, (or eccentricand wrist-pin,) h, to which is connected the pitman 2', the latter beingjointed to one arm of a rock-lever, j, on a bar, k, of the frame, and tothe other arm of the lever j is connected the link Z, which in turn issecured by a joint to the feeder D. The rotary motion given to the shaftB by the revolution of the wheel 0 is thus converted into areciprocating motion of the feeder.

The feeder Dis afiat plate,shaped with beveled sides or otherwise toslide freely in ways in the bottom of the hopper E and over its bot tomboard, F. This feeder has an oblong longitudinal opening, an, in-itsend, covering the port or dischargethroat n of the hopper-bot tom. Theopening 122 hasits sides converging toward the face of the feeder, andthere is inserted in it from beneath a beveled-edge block, 0, having anumber of cells, 1), the sides of which flare upward, and these cellsreceive correspondingly-shaped seed-dies g from above. The openings inthese dies are widest or flare outward and downward at their months ordischarge ends,to give clearance to the seed and prevent choking, andthe shape of the opening will be adapted to the kind of seed to be sownor planted. A clearer, 0*, which may be a-board or a brush, is arrangedover the feeder, to limit the quantity of seed falling into the dies,and this clearer is placed over the discharge-port n,to prevent theunrestricted out flow of the seed. As the feederis reciprocated beneaththis clearer its dies will take the seed from both sides; hence therewill be sowing or planting at both the forward and return strokes ofsaid feeder. The clearer will be attached to the side walls ofthehopper. The provision of the block o,with its dies, admits of thedischarge of a greater or less quantity of seed irrespective of therapidity of movement of the feeder, so that the hills maybe made more orless distant, according to the number of dies used,without changing thespeed of the feeder.

IOO

The blocks may have one, two, or more cells, and each cell a die,- or,if the block have many cells and it is desired to use only one or two,and so plant slowly or drop the seeds far apart, the other cells may beclosed bya solid or imperforate die. The blocks may be removed bydisconnecting the feeder from its link and drawing it from the hopperendwise, to give access to said block from its back. The dies may beremoved or replaced while the block and feeder are in the hopper. it-hsome seeds it may be found advantageous to omit the dies entirely andfeed with the cellular block only.

The hopper may have a removable partition, G, to divide it into twocompartments, for use in sowing fertilizer and seed at the same time, orfor facilitating the planting of cotton-seed, peanuts, and the likelarge seeds; and astirrer, H, such as a rotary rimless wheel, may bearranged in one end, which is conveniently driven by an endless chain,9, on the sprocketwheel 9 of shaftf and the sprocket-wheel gof thestirrer-shaft. For such seeds or for drilling I provide an oblongdischarge-port, s, in the hopper-bottom board. This port, when notinuse, is closed by astoppens, held in place by a latch, t, pivoted to thebottom board, and held in place by aguide-rail, t, on said board.

For drilling I use afeederhaving an oblong opening, (see Figs. 5 and 6,)the Width ofwhich may be diminished by dies or die-strips q to governthe quantity sown, and these strips may or may not flare downward andoutward. I set the hopper low down in the frame, so as to diminish thefall of the seed and its consequent liability to scatter, and to furtherguard against scattering by the wind or trash, I employ beneath thehopper and longitudinally thereof an opener, I, theleading end of whichis prow'like and the near end hollow, having walls a coming down to theearth and forming a laterally and forwardly-inclosed well surroundingthe opened furrow and the falling seed, and thus insuring it against thewind, trash, and scattering.

The gage for the depth of furrow consists of a triangular plate, J,adjustably arranged in advance of the opener, slotted arms '1) andset-screw n being employed to adjustably attach such gage to theframing.

The coverer K consists of two arms, which may be more or less rigid,pivoted to the opener to rise and fall with the machine, and serving todrag the earth from opposite sides of the furrow into it to cover theseed.

I wish it understood that the mechanism herein shown and described,arranged as set forth, is a single example of my invention; but I do nothereby limit the invention to this single form, it admit-ting of change.

that, generally speaking, a combination of these several elements in onemachine is not radically new; but the inj eetion into such combinationof the special form of welled opener and cellular feeder by me shownenables me to plant rice and cotton, and even peanuts, in a manner andwith a success not heretofore obtained, and it is this I desire to claimas my combination.

Vhat I claim is 1. The feeder or feed-slide for seeding-machines, havinga removable block set therein, and provided with openings or cellsvariable as to size to adapt the feeder to seeds of various kinds,substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the feeder or feed slide having an openingtherein, of a cellular block removably secured in it, and seed-diesarranged in the cells of said block, substantially as described.

8. The combination, substantially as shown and described, of a hopperprovided with ways in its lower portion and a dischargethroat, the flatplate feed-slide D, arranged in said ways, means, as set forth, toreciprocate said slide in its said ways, the beveled-edge cellular block0, fitted from below in the beveled opening 112, made in saidfeed-slide, and the beveled-edge seed-dies (1, fitted from above in thecellular block 0, to vary the size of the discharge opening to adapt themachine for seeds of various kinds, as set forth.

it. The combination, substantially as shown and described, of the hopperE, provided with the partition G,to divide it into two compartments, andhaving the discharge openings at and s, the latter provided with a gate,8, the cellular feed-slide 1), having changeable seeddies to dischargethrough each of the dischargeopenings, means to reciprocate said slide,the proW-like furrow-opener having the well, asshown, for covering inthe discharge openings, and a coverer, all and severally as and for thepurposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 18th day ofFebruary, A. D. 1884.

FELIX F. CHERRY.

\Vitnesses:

J. H. MILLER, J. ALEX. MILLER.

